Alternative

As IT Professionals review the latest DCIG report, “TOP 5 Enterprise VMware vSphere Alternatives,” they may ask themselves, “Are all VMware alternatives the same?”. Many are very similar. The only real difference between most alternatives and VMware, especially in the post-Broadcom era, is that they are less expensive, from a licensing perspective.

Like VMware, however, they all take a similar path to creating a complete infrastructure solution. They use multiple and separate software applications to build the IT stack. Unlike VMware, most alternatives are not directly responsible for all the components of their infrastructure bundle. This modular approach to infrastructure will leave most organizations with an IT stack that is just as complex, brittle, and ultimately as expensive as VMware.

Are VMware Alternative Hypervisors The Same?

Vendors whose “value add” is a GUI lose the opportunity for optimizations and typically have limited source-code-level expertise. Suppose an issue arises between KVM and other components within their solution stack, which they also don’t have direct control over. In these situations, they often cannot resolve the issue without the community’s help, forcing customers to tolerate the problem longer than if they had a vendor with deep code-level experience.

VergeOS’ Highly Optimized Hypervisor

VergeIO also uses KVM and QEMU inside of VergeOS. However, the VergeIO development team focuses on making storage, memory, networking, and other virtual devices more efficient in minimizing overhead and maximizing performance. Most importantly, instead of separate programs for all of these functions, they have all been integrated as services within VergeOS, work that no other hypervisor vendor has undertaken.

VergeIO has done deep code optimization into KVM/QEMU to integrate its storage services (VergeFS) and network services (VergeFabric), flattening the IT stack into a single piece of infrastructure software. The goal is to maximize efficiency and unlock the hardware’s performance potential. Unlike other VMware alternative vendors, VergeIO has control of and expertise over all the infrastructure services. As a result, the VergeIO development team has a deep understanding, at a source code level, of both KVM and QEMU.

Are All VMware Alternative Storage Services the Same?

The storage component of VMware alternatives is a little more confusing. Some provide almost no storage services, requiring a standalone storage system. Most traditional KVM-based VMware alternatives will incorporate another open-source software solution like CEPH or ZFS into their package. Again, they typically don’t have a deep understanding of the CEPH or ZFS source code and don’t have direct control over it. These vendors only “integration” is adding support for managing the separate storage software through their GUI.

Several recent entries into the VMware alternative market are companies that used to provide storage services under VMware but are now looking to position themselves for the alternative market. These new VMware alternatives are typically software-defined storage solutions that have created a way to run as a VM under KVM instead of VMware. These vendors have even less knowledge of the KVM source code and have made little or no optimizations to that code. Many vendors can not scale with the hypervisor and must dedicate storage functions to two nodes. Other vendors can’t support external storage and don’t provide a bridge to more affordable hyperconverged storage.

VergeOS’ Optimized Storage Services

VergeIO wrote our storage software from the ground up to be optimized to work in a virtualized environment, something that an object store (CEPH) or file system (ZFS) is not. Second, we wrote VergeFS to integrate into a hypervisor, not be a VM of one. We integrated into VergeOS.

Combining these two design goals creates a highly efficient storage service providing enterprise-class features and performance. VergeFS’ performance often exceeds that of standalone storage arrays and delivers features like:

• ioClone: Unlimited, independent snapshots with no performance impact.
• Global Inline Data Deduplication: Infrastructure-wide data efficiency.
• ioGuardian: maintaining data access even after multiple drive and server failures.
• Fibre Channel Arrays: VergeOS provides a bridge to hyperconverged infrastructure.
• Mixed Nodes: Storage-only, Compute-only, and Blade servers are all supported.

Are All VMware Alternative Network Services the Same?

The networking components of VMware alternatives are as confusing as the storage. Most vendors have no additional networking functionality other than what is built into the core hypervisor. Those that rely heavily on third parties. Most customers will continue to use networking appliances instead of counting on any of the hypervisor capabilities, which means they are paying extra for something that should be built into the infrastructure software.

The VMware alternative vendor may or may not be able to manage these network capabilities from the GUI. Problem resolution is a problem for them, as they do not have direct control over the software.

VergeOS Integrates Network Services

VergeOS provides complete Layer 2 / Layer 3 network services, including firewall, routing, and other services. These services are integrated into the VergeOS GUI, simplifying network management. Customers can use their existing network appliances and then gradually transition to VergeOS’ services when ready.

Are All VMWare Alternatives Able to Offer Private Cloud

Take advantage of this part. Every data center, no matter how small or what industry, can benefit by using secure multi-tenancy. Most IT professionals assume that a private cloud is essential only to organizations providing infrastructure (IaaS). IaaS providers have the use case to justify the high cost of private cloud software. However, most organizations can benefit if the private cloud capability is affordable. Unfortunately, with only a few exceptions, most VMware alternatives do not integrate multi-tenancy into their offering. If it is available, it is only as an expensive add-on.

VergeOS Virtual Data Centers Bring Multi-Tenancy to Every Data Center

Virtual Data Centers (VDC) are VergeIO’s take on multi-tenancy integrated into VergeOS. There is no additional charge for their use. A VDC encapsulates the physical data center like a VM encapsulates a physical server. Once encapsulated, you can manipulate it like a VM. They can also be snapshotted using our ioClone technology, making them ideal for patch testing and other virtual lab functionality.

The most universal use case is using VDCs for disaster recovery. By leveraging our built-in replication and global inline deduplication, you can copy a VDC to a remote site and keep that site up to date. When you make this copy, you make a perfectly consistent copy of the data center. Because of the encapsulation, you capture all the VM settings, network configuration, and, of course, all the data. Check out this chalk-talk video to learn more about VDCs.

Are All VMware Alternative Migration Services the Same?

Most VMware Alternatives have some functionality to help you migrate your VMware VMs to the target hypervisor. Usually, these migration services are separate programs that run externally from the core infrastructure software applications. Depending on the vendor migration tool, jobs can take ten minutes or more per VM. As we cover in our article “Minimizing VMware Migration Downtime,”, migration speed is critical for various reasons.

VergeOS Integrated, Fast VMware Migrations

VergeIO VMware migration capability, ioMigrate, is integrated into VergeOS, enabling fast, seamless migration. The first step in the migration process is to “back up” the VMware VM to a VergeOS host. ioMigrate uses VMware’s backup API set to get a complete copy of the entire VM, including its network settings. It is stored on VergeOS and can function as a backup/DR option.

The second step is to import the VM into VergeOS. Before importing the VM, you can take a snapshot of it if something goes wrong in testing. The import process takes seconds, no matter how many VMs are being migrated. The demonstration below shows 10 VMs being converted in less than ten seconds.

Conclusion

While it may seem that all VMware alternatives are essentially the same, significant differences exist in how these alternatives provide a complete infrastructure solution, particularly in handling hypervisors, storage, networking, and migration services. Most alternatives replicate VMware’s modular and complex architecture, providing little beyond a different price tag and a customized GUI. In contrast, VergeIO offers a unique and optimized solution that integrates and refines each component, from its deeply optimized hypervisor and storage services to its comprehensive network capabilities and efficient migration tools.

VergeIO’s approach to creating a cohesive infrastructure operating system sets us apart. By controlling and understanding every aspect of the IT stack at the source code level, VergeIO ensures higher performance, greater reliability, and a smoother user experience. This integrated, efficient, and highly optimized solution not only simplifies IT management but goes far beyond a lower upfront licensing cost, continually reducing the long-term cost of infrastructure.

When IT considers a VMware alternative, calculating VMware migration costs is critical in understanding the total cost of ownership (TCO). The path to the alternative should be seamless and staged so the organization can transition at a comfortable pace, but IT should determine that pace, not the software. The longer and more complex the migration cycle, the higher the overall TCO of the alternative is. These costs include running dual systems, application outages, and extra IT staff hours. The ideal alternative should enable IT to perform the migration as fast as they are comfortable, and with as minimal an outage as possible.

Prerequisite of a VMware Migration

The first step in calculating VMware migration costs is not migration planning. You can’t plan the migration until you know the requirements of the VMware alternative you are selecting. Understanding the requirements of the alternative goes beyond the migration function itself. Many VMware alternatives require that you replace your existing servers with a group of their servers as part of a “turnkey” solution or one of their “certified” vendor configurations. With other solutions, the process is so slow and disruptive that you have to have two groups of servers to sustain operations while you migrate.

These requirements mean that you must have two stacks of servers running while you transition, which could take six months or more because of the slowness of the process. These two stacks have a ripple effect, consuming double the network ports, potentially double the storage, doubling the power and cooling requirements, and doubling the data protection requirement.

The Cost of VMware Migration Time

While many VMware alternatives have a VMware migration capability, understanding the time it takes to transfer and convert virtual machines (VM) between the two platforms is the critical next step in calculating VMware migration costs. Some alternatives take 10-30 minutes per VM, while others require creating a new VM, installing the application, and copying the data over, which to get it right could take hours per VM. In most cases, these are not batch jobs that can be set to run and returned to later; IT needs to keep a careful eye on the process to ensure it completes successfully.

The Cost of VMware Migration Testing

The transfer and conversion time impacts the ability to test workloads on the alternative before the final cut-over. It is also an essential aspect of calculating VMware migration costs. A common-sense process is to migrate a group of VMs to the VMware alternative, test them for a few days to ensure they work as expected, and then do a final migration. That means that the conversion time is felt twice, which now means each VM will require 30-90 minutes of conversion time in total. If the VM needs to be shut down for all of this migration time, that is a significant outage.

The Cost of VMware Migration Application Outages

The time it takes to initially test and then permanently migrate VMs to the VMware alternative also impacts when you can migrate. If there is a significant application outage, you can’t migrate during the typical workday or over a few weekday evenings. You will need to allocate multiple weekends to the process. The when migration component means you must run dual systems longer and complicates network configuration and data protection since now you must continue to protect the legacy VMware environment and protect the new hypervisor environment as each week it gains a few more production applications.

The Cost of Learning The VMware Alternative

The final component in calculating VMware migration costs is the cost of learning the new platform. If it takes you weeks or months to learn how to use the VMware alternative effectively, then it takes longer for you to test migrated VMs before moving them to production. A long learning curve consumes more time to complete the migration, increasing the time you need to run dual systems.

Slow Migration Means New Hardware

While many VMware alternatives require buying new servers, a few claim to use your existing hardware. However, a slow and complex migration process eliminates that possibility. The customer is forced to buy new hardware and run parallel systems to move through the sluggish migrate, test, and migrate cycle again. As a result, they will need to be prepared to run these parallel systems for a long time.

VergeOS – Migrate Better

Calculating VMware migration costs is easy with VergeIO. There are none. We have integrated its VMware migration functionality directly into the core of VergeOS. Log VergeOS into your vCenter to start a migration, select the VMs you want to migrate, and click the migrate button. The migration function transfers the VM data to VergeOS as fast as VMware can send it. The process stores the VMware VMs as backup files; you can even update them with change block tracking (CBT). When you need to test those VMs under VergeOS, converting them to a VergeIO VM takes a few seconds, and you are all set to begin testing.

The process is so seamless and fast that many customers will select and copy all their VMs at once, again keeping them updated with CBT. They will then use VergeOS as a robust DR solution with our ioProtect functionality. ioProtect enables the initial investment in VergeOS to add value while you are migrating. As you are performing your testing, the original VMware VMs are kept up to date, so if you need to re-test, the VMware version is always up to date. When you are ready to make the final cutover, perform one more quick data sync, shut down your VMware VM, and start your VergeOS VM. The VM is only down for the 20-30 seconds it takes to boot, minimizing any production impact.

The speed of VergeOS’s migration capabilities makes it practical to use existing hardware and do an “in-place” migration. All you have to do is clear off one physical server, load VergeOS onto it, and then begin the migration process, clearing the VMs from another host and starting them under VergeOS. As each server is freed of its VMware responsibilities, it can be added to the VergeOS instance. We’ve employed this process many times to enable customers to utilize their existing hardware without disrupting users.

VergeIO’s zero-cost migration capabilities are just one way to reduce the total cost of data center infrastructure. Thanks to VergeOS’ efficiency, you’ll be able to slow down the pace at which you buy servers, lower the cost of storage capacity, and simplify operations. At the same time, you experience the peace of mind of an infrastructure-wide approach to data protection and high availability that is the best in the industry.

Want to learn more? Use this link to arrange a time for us to conduct a technical whiteboard session on how VergeOS’ elegant architecture is uniquely positioned to deliver on all of these promises.

Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) is a vital part of any IT decision, and the TCO of a VMware alternative is no exception. Our recent survey of VMware customers found that IT professionals are looking for a VMware alternative to do more than just lower licensing costs. They are looking for a solution that can lower the cost of the entire infrastructure, both upfront and long-term. The problem is that most alternatives focus solely on upfront license costs, masking simplicity behind strict hardware requirements, eventually increasing the total cost of ownership (TCO).

Reducing Infrastructure Operation Costs

Lowering the TCO of a VMware alternative requires that IT can reduce one of the most significant costs outside of the license, which is the time cost of people operating it. The problem is that most alternatives use a similar approach to deliver infrastructure services as VMware. They use a layer or stacked approach, squeezing separate pieces of software onto a server. However, VMware alternative vendors complicate things because they typically use open-source components that were not originally designed to work together. They try to emulate integration by adding a “custom” graphical user interface (GUI).

The layered approach, correctly labeled “the stack,” adds significant overhead and slows down operations as the loosely connected components try to exchange information between themselves. Each layer in the stack often requires a virtual machine and its high-availability functionality. When you navigate this stack, its overhead becomes evident as you interact with the GUI. Once burdened with only a few dozen virtual machines, the interface can take 30 seconds or more to refresh or update with each interaction. This refresh time leads to hours a day waiting for screen refreshes.

VergeOS – Integrated Operational Simplicity

VergeOS is unique in the infrastructure software market in that it provides a fully integrated solution. There is no stack. A single piece of software provides all the functionality that the above VMware Alternatives try to cobble together. VergeOS includes an enterprise-class hypervisor, storage services, and networking functionality. The result is an operational experience that enables IT professionals to move through their day seamlessly. As our customer, SkiBig3 stated in a recent webinar, “I don’t spend all day in the VergeIO interface. I get what I need to get done and then take care of other tasks. Managing infrastructure is something I get done a few minutes per day instead of hours.”

Reducing Infrastructure Hardware Costs

Lowering infrastructure hardware costs can also lower the TCO of a VMware Alternative. The problem is that most alternatives deliver the exact opposite. In the name of “simplification,” they require that you purchase a turnkey solution from them or buy hardware from a certified vendor. The configurations are often designed to compensate for the inefficiency of their stack.

In addition, most VMware alternatives lack built-in, integrated storage functionality and networking capabilities, or they use a stand-alone open-source component. This shortcoming either forces customers to purchase dedicated storage arrays and network appliances for routing and firewalls or learn and configure another piece of infrastructure software.

VergeOS – Bring Your Own Hardware

Over 95% of the organizations we speak to have server hardware suitable for hosting VergeOS. This support flexibility is another of the by-products of delivering a fully integrated solution. At VergeIO, we have never forced customers to upgrade hardware to support an upcoming version of VergeOS. Our customers often mix six-year-old hardware with three-month-old hardware and manage it all from a single instance of our solution. The result is an infrastructure that evolves with your needs and the practicality of hardware innovation.

Integrating storage and networking services into VergeOS means that IT professionals can gradually eliminate the need for dedicated storage arrays and networking appliances. This integration has the added benefit that the entire infrastructure is now aware that they exist. For example, VergeOS integrates deduplication at its core, which means both the hypervisor and network are “dedupe aware.” The result is that the deduplication, since it is integrated into the core of VergeIO, lowers compute and networking requirements in addition to storage capacity.

Reducing Infrastructure Upgrade Costs

Part of reducing the TCO of a VMware alternative is ensuring that the cost of upgrading the infrastructure doesn’t become prohibitive. Customers are looking to escape the VMware practice of no longer supporting certain hardware as new versions of its software are released. Given infrastructure software’s potential to provide high availability and redundancy, IT professionals should be free to run existing hardware for years while gradually mixing in newer hardware. Organizational demand should drive hardware upgrades, not software inefficiencies.

The turnkey hardware approach and strict hardware compatibility guides that some infrastructure software vendors employ make upgrades difficult. In most cases, all the servers must be refreshed at once instead of gradually replaced as needed or required by age. This practice also makes it difficult to solve a specific problem, such as if the infrastructure only needs more storage capacity but not additional computing power.

VergeOS – Future Scale

VergeOS is designed to enable IT professionals to adapt their infrastructure gradually as the needs of the business demand it. It supports dramatically different nodes within the same instance. Servers can be from different vendors, generations or brands of processors, and configurations (storage-heavy, compute-heavy, GPU-enhanced). VergeOS uses off-the-shelf NVMe-Flash and Hard Disk Drives, making capacity less expensive than dedicated storage arrays by a factor of five or more while delivering a robust set of enterprise-class storage services.

VergeOS’s capability to integrate with existing and diverse hardware components underscores its value proposition in reducing the overall TCO. By eliminating the need for dedicated storage arrays and networking appliances and by allowing for a gradual, need-based hardware upgrade path, VergeOS presents a sustainable model that aligns with the practical realities of IT budgeting.

Conclusion

Evaluating the TCO of a VMware alternative requires a holistic approach and an understanding of the triggers that can increase TCO. IT professionals must consider the operational, hardware, and upgrade costs associated with infrastructure software. VergeOS stands out by offering a fully integrated solution that simplifies the operational process and significantly reduces the reliance on expensive, dedicated hardware and the costs associated with upgrading and scaling infrastructure. This integrated approach allows for a seamless operational experience and a more cost-effective, flexible hardware strategy, setting a new standard in the industry for efficiency and adaptability.

Are you ready to map out your VMware Exit? Schedule a 15-minute session with one of our experts, and we will create a custom step-by-step transition guide for you.

Once IT decides to make the switch, it must answer five VMware migration questions before completing the transition. Of course, before you even get to migration, you need to make sure that your potential new hypervisor will help you reduce costs both upfront and long-term. It also should deliver improved data protection and resiliency.

Assuming you’ve found a product that makes migration worthwhile, making sure you understand how your potential new hypervisor will address the five VMware migration questions is critical:

1. How is the migration service delivered?
2. How much downtime is involved?
3. Does migrating require new hardware?
4. Can I migrate gradually?
5. What is the process for migration?

1. How is VMware Migration Delivered?

The first of the five VMware migration questions focuses on how integrated migration is into the alternative vendor’s solution. Different VMware alternative vendors will use different approaches to deliver their VMware migration capabilities. For some vendors, it is a manual export of the VMware Virtual Machines (VM) and then a manual import of the VMs into their environment. The manual process may cause significant outages as you transfer the VMs between environments. Other vendors use a third-party utility to access vCenter, pull all the VMs over, and then convert them to run within their hypervisor. This method also leads to outages as the migration occurs and often forces an all-at-once cut-over.

In both cases, these migrations are very time-consuming. We’ve seen reports of 30 minutes per VM, which in even a smaller environment of a few dozen VMs is days of copying data before you can begin testing. It is critical to remember that there is a difference between converting a few VMs in a lab environment and rolling the migration service out in production.

VergeOS Integrated Migration

VergeOS’ ioMigrate function is integrated directly into VergeOS. It then connects directly to vCenter and presents a list of VMware VMs for you to migrate. The transfer to VergeOS is fast; we typically show customers VMware to VergeOS migrations in real time during our demonstrations. During those demonstrations we show the migration and import of five VMware VMs in less than 15 seconds. Also, ioMigrate is not limited to a single VM at a time. You can migrate all of your VMs at once if you need to.

2. How Much Downtime is Involved for a VMware Migration?

The next of the five VMware migration questions to answer concerns downtime. Obviously, you want as little downtime as possible. Obviously, the transfer time mentioned in question one impacts downtime. If it takes 30 minutes to transfer a VM to the new hypervisor, that effectively means the VM has to be “off” for the complete transfer while the VM is being converted and restarted on the new hypervisor. For most alternative solutions, this means that the migration to the new hypervisor is something that has to be done over multiple weekends, which means you have to be running parallel systems for a longer time than you might have hoped.

VergeOS Minimizes Migration Downtime

VergeOS ioMigrate provides very fast transfers of VMware VMs into our environment, but we don’t convert them to VergeOS VMs until you are ready to test them. ioMigrate also uses change block tracking (CBT) to update these VM copies continuously throughout the day. In this demonstration video, you’ll see that we update them every hour. These CBT transfers are very fast regardless of the size of the original VM.

With ioMigrate, when you are ready to execute the conversion, you will likely do one more quick CBT backup to ensure you have the latest version of the VM. Then you’ll click import, answer a few questions, and in seconds, the VM will boot under VergeOS. Downtime with VergeOS is the time it takes to execute the last CBT backup and to start the VM under VergeOS which equates to a few minutes.

3. Does the VMware Migration Require New Hardware?

The answer to the third of the five VMware migration questions may not be driven by a migration activity. Instead, it may be driven by a business methodology. Many VMware alternatives require that you buy either new hardware from them, or adhere to a very strict certified vendor list, which effectively requires you to buy new hardware.

If your VMware alternative is able to run on your hardware, the capabilities of the hypervisor’s migration function also impact whether or not you still have to buy new hardware. Most in-place migrations will require that you “clear” one of your existing servers, likely running VMware, to accept the new hypervisor. That is to be expected but doing so means that you are limited on the amount of available compute to run production while you are converting. You are also exposing yourself to an outage because you’ve lowered your level of redundancy. If it takes hours or days, you may decide it is more practical to buy at least one new server to start the process with less pressure.

Schedule a quick 15-minute chat with one of our technical experts who can create a custom, step-by-step VMware Exit strategy for your organization.

VergeOS Migration without New Hardware

ioMigrate’s ability to rapidly copy multiple VMs simultaneously and to rapidly update those VMs via CBT means customers can facilitate a safe migration without purchasing additional hardware. As mentioned above, you “clear” one of the servers to receive VergeOS, but thanks to the speed of transfer, updates, and conversions, these customers can bring the VergeIO VMs online very quickly. Plus, VergeOS, for the time you specify, can retain the final VMware image in case something goes wrong in the testing and conversion process. Another advantage is that the efficiency of VergeOS breathes new life into your existing hardware.

4. Can VMware Migration Occur Gradually?

The fourth of the five VMware migration questions focuses on the pace of migration. VMware is infrastructure, and most customers, for good reason, want to take the migration process gradually. The problem is that most migrations are an all-or-nothing proposition. As a result, many customers will take the “safer” route and buy a whole new stack of hardware so they can migrate at a more comfortable pace.

VergeOS, Migrate at Your Pace, Fast or Slow

VergeOS enables your migration to be at the pace you are most comfortable with. ioMigrate can position data for you very quickly and keep it up to date. Many customers only want to migrate a few VMs at a time and test the migrated VMs extensively prior to moving them into production. Using the ioMigrate scheduling function, IT can follow this process of testing a few VMs at a time under VergeOS, while the rest of their VMware environment is constantly being updated behind the scenes with CBT transfers.

5. What’s The VMware Migration Process?

The final of the five VMware migration questions gets into the specific details. With other migration functions, the process is a serial, one-at-a-time VM transfer which itself is very slow. It forces customers to take more of an all-at-once approach to conversion, which leads to multiple long weekends to complete the task.

VergeOS’ VMware Migration Process

As mentioned above, the typical process is to “clear” one of your VMware servers by migrating your VMware VMs to other VMware hosts. Then, on the “cleared” server, remove VMware from it and install VergeOS. Optionally, if you have enough capacity on the first VergeOS server use ioMigrate to migrate ALL the VMware virtual machines over. Essentially you are doing a backup of your VMware environment. Then, using ioMigrate, set up a schedule to keep all these VMs up to date using frequent CBT backups.

With all the VMware VMs captured, you can now import your first group of VMs into VergeOS using the process mentioned above and demonstrated in this video. First, shut down your first set of VMware VMs, do one final CBT backup, and import the VMs into VergeOS. Test them to ensure everything is working as expected and make them available to users. Given VergeOS’s resource efficiency, you should be able to put enough VMs into production on the VergeOS host to “clear” another VMware host and convert it to VergeOS. You’ll repeat this process by importing more VMs into VergeOS, which clears additional VMware hosts, which are then re-imaged with VergeOS and integrated into the VergeIO instance.

With the five VMware migration questions resolved, you’ll have everything converted, and you’ll be ready to enjoy all the capabilities of VergeOS, like our recently announced ioGuardian, which maintains application availability even during multiple drive or server failures. Join us tomorrow for a live webinar and demonstration unveiling ioGuardian. After all you should get more from your VMware alternative than just a better price.